Global Systems & Governance Flashcards
What products do you find palm oil in?
- Cadbury’s Chocolate
- Findus Fish Fingers
- Hair and cleaning products
- Candles
- Processed foods
Palm oil production over time [3]
- Palm oil plantations have 3x in last decade
- Now: 10 firms control 28% of global food production
- UK consumes around 320,000 tonnes/yr
Where is most the world’s palm oil (90%) produced?
Malaysia & Indonesia - South East Asia
In Indonesia how many hectares of rainforest have been transformed into palm oil plantations?
13 million hectares
Environmental impacts of palm oil production [3]
- Chemicals used in palm oil pollute the water
- Environmental damage - 13 million hectares of rainforest destroyed, loss of habitats etc.
- Placed enormous pressures on tropical rainforest biomes
Economic impacts of palm oil production [2]
- Locals are usually obliged to work for low wages
- Many palm oil plantations engage in low paid and exploitative labour
Social impacts of palm oil production [2]
- Child labour and forced labour is common practice
- TNCs have often forced local inhabitants off the land, sometimes violently
Making palm oil production sustainable?
- Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
2,000 members over 75 countries
RSPO-certified palm oil has to be environmentally responsible & conserves natural resources & biodiversity, alongside consideration of employees and local communities
Between Jan 2015-16 how much have sales of RSPO palm oil increased?
- Three-fold, however there are still ongoing investigations of child & forced labour.
What are tariffs?
- A tax on imports
What’s an import license?
- National gov’s use to authorise the importation of goods from a specific source
What are import quotas?
- A physical limit on the quantity of goods that can be imported into a country
What are subsidies?
- Allowances awarded to domestic products to make them more competitive against imported.
What are voluntary export restraints?
- Offered by exporting country to appease the importing country + deter from imposing trade barriers
What are embargoes?
Partial/complete prohibition of trade with a country - usually done politically
Advantages of international trade [3]
- Transfer of technology -> supporting innovation & enterprise
- Increased employment -> more jobs across whole economy
- Economies of scale -> country can produce in higher volumes when producing lower range of goods
Disadvantages of international trade [3]
- De-skilling -> traditional skills may be lost when tech replaces manpower
- Exploitative and labour-intensive industries -> mass-production often causes sweatshops + bad conditions
- Stunted growth of local industries -> cannot compete with cheaply produced global products.
Define globalisation [2]
- The process of becoming more globally connected on a variety of scales.
- The movement of people, knowledge, ideas, goods & money across national borders , leading to a ‘borderless world’.
What are the types of globalisation? [4]
- Economic - e.g. outsourcing production
- Political - e.g. trade blocs/international orgs e.g. UN
- Cultural - e.g. travel, Westernisation
- Social - e.g. social networking, global NGOs & charities
What are capital flows?
- The movement of money for the purpose of investment, trade or business
production.
What are the major flows of capital?
- Core regions - wealthier, developed countries that have power
- Periphery regions - less wealthy, developing/ less developed countries
- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) - an international corporation that aims to ensure financial stability, high employment & stable economic growth.
- The World Bank - a group of global institution that gives out loans for relief
What are flows of labour?
The movement of people who move to work in another country.
What are the impacts of flows of labour? [3]
- Most migrants have some level of education
- Can afford to move, therefore not very poorest in giving nation
- Long term issue as people stop sending remittances after 2/3 generations
By how much did global trade increase between 1870 and 1913?
4.1% a year
What % of the world’s population today are international migrants?
3-4% with majority of migrants migrating to HICs
What are highly skilled workers?
Highly trained in jobs that require a great deal of skill, such as in medicine, science, or ICT
What are unskilled workers?
Those who are underqualified and do not possess ‘expert knowledge’ in their employment.
What is the flow of products?
Flows of physical goods from one country to another
What are the impacts of flows of products? [3]
- Products used to be produced mainly in HICs as they had money to manufacture
- Products are now traded internationally due to technological advancements
- Production has been offshored from HICs
What are flows of service?
- Use of people’s skills globally
How do trade agreements affect globalization? [3]
- Without global trading rules, countries would resist some foreign imports whilst possibly favouring others
- World Trade Organisation oversees >97% world trade
- Since 1950s countries have formed trade blocs e.g. the EU
How do financial systems affect globalisation? [2]
- Banks & financial services are linked by vital transmission systems that allow lending + flows of money
- 2007 collapse of US house prices -> credit squeeze (banks x want to lend) -> global banking crisis in 2008
How does transport affect globalisation? [2]
- Global transport network allows the movement of people & goods across vast distance
- New opportunities but also threats e.g. spread of disease
How does global security affect globalisation? [1]
- Cybersecurity rose to prominence - e.g. in UK average cost for severe online security breaches nearly £1.5 million.
How does technology affect globalisation? [2]
- Info can now be shared easily & quickly online
- Mobile phones are now important for LDEs as they connect diff people, markets & trade
What are the different flows of capital? [5]
- Aid
- Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
- Migration
- Repatriation (return to own country) of profits
- Remittance payments (migrants money paid back to families)
What are 5 global instituitions? (international org. where member states transcend national boundaries) [5]
- NATO
- WHO
- International Monetary Fund
- UN
- UNICEF
What is the IMF?
International Monetary Fund which aims to allow economic stability and foster international trade.
What are trade blocs?
Groups of countries in specific regions that manage and promote trade activities.
What are global commons?
- Resource domains or areas that lie out of the political reach of any one nation
What are the four global commons? [4]
- The High Seas
- Atmosphere
- Antarctica
- Outer space
What are the principles of the global commons? [2]
- Resources found are available for everyone’s use & benefit
- Must take into consideration future generations + needs of developing countries
Thomas Friedman’s view on globalisation [2]
- May reduce conflict & lead to political stability through the sense of the world being one community
- Most war-torn places tend to be those with fewer global trade alliances
How may globalisation lead to conflict? [3]
- Sense of injustice created towards richer nations
- Resource conflicts - e.g. Chinese ‘land grab’ in Africa -> large scale investment is increasing tensions & environ. concern
- Foreign aid can indirectly help fund conflict e.g. Afghanistan
Location & Geography of Antarctica [3]
- South of Antarctic circle
- Much of continent is infringed with ice, e.g. Ross Ice Shelf in Ross Sea
- Southern Ocean
How is fishing & whaling a threat to Antarctica? [4]
- Was a highly profitable business -> led to whale populations dramatically declining due to overkilling many species
- International Whaling Commission ended most whaling in 1985
- Fishing now replaced whaling - Russia & Japan overfishing for krill -> essential for the natural ecosystem!
- Ships dump waste into the ocean, contaminating the water, killing organisms.
Methods to protect Antarctica [2]
- Antarctic Treaty System - established clear guidelines & signed to avoid disagreements in 1950s
- NGOs - e.g. WWF, Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth
UN promoting growth & stability [3]
- Ambitious Millennium Development Goals achieved notable success
- Eradication of smallpox & near eradication of polio
- 170+ UN settlements have ended regional conflicts
UN exacerbating inequalities & injustices [3]
- UN only had a minor influence on wars e.g. Vietnam War
- AIDS pandemic continues to cross countries & continents
- Efforts hampered at rebuilding in Afghanistan due to failures addressing security situations
Value of international trade [2]
- Increased dramatically since WW2, value of global merchandise:
1948 - $59 billion
1973 - $579 billion
What % of global trade do USA Germany & Japan account for?
25%
Interactions betw. local, regional, national, international & global scales of trade [4]
Decisions made by global institutions affect all scales:
- Trade agreements set by the WTO (global) affect how trading happens internationally, e.g. in the EU (international)
- In turn, the Department for International Trade (national) decides what products the UK imports from where.
- A warehouse (regional) receives the international products and distributes them.
- Local shop buys the international products from the warehouse
What are TNCs?
- Companies that operate in at least 2 countries
What is the global distribution of TNCs?
- Most found in HICs or NEEs: Dominating countries USA & China
- Limited TNCs in Africa
Why do TNCs choose to operate in more than one country? [4]
- Escape trade tariffs
- Find lowest cost location for their production
- Reach foreign markets more effectively
- Exploit resources
Spatial organisation of TNCs [2]
- Hierarchal model of org. + impose top-down decision making
- May mean branch plants are vulnerable to sudden closure/ job losses e.g. UK steelwork closures by Fata Steel 2015
Linkages & production of TNCs [3]
- Maintain strong links betw. all parts of org. -> strong links betw. countries
Horizontal integration: improving links betw. different firms in same stage of production
Vertical integration: an industry where one company owns/controls multiple stages in production
Trading & marketing patterns of TNCs [1]
- Production takes place in LDEs or emerging economies (particularly China)
What is global marketing?
Marketing a product for more than one country
How can unequal flows of labour lead to inequalities?
Less developed countries suffer from ‘brain drain’
How can unequal flows of labour cause injustice?
Migrant workers are sometimes made to work in dangerous conditions for little money
What is fair trade?
A way of trading that supports people in LICs who make products for HICs
Economic consequence of differential access to markets [2]
- Countries w/ high levels of market access see more economic growth as they can trade more
- Hard for countries with poor market access to establish new industries
Social impacts of differential access to markets [2]
- People in countries with better market access tend to have higher paid jobs, giving them more disposable income and a higher living standard
- Much dangerous, poorly paid work has moved from developed countries to less developed countries e.g. Sweatshops
What benefits has globalisation brought? [4]
- Integration
- Stability
- Development
- Economic growth
How does trade increase living standards?
Higher levels of market access mean a wide availability of goods, increasing living standards
How does trade create interdepedence?
If something goes wrong, other countries are affected e.g. 2008 financial crisis increased unemployment in many countries.
